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AGRICULTURE Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. attended a World Bank Group (WBG) event last week and sought monetary support to modernize Philippine agribusiness, noting that the international financial group’s $9 billion annual investment goal by 2030 aligns with the Philippines’ plans to upgrade its farming systems.
Tiu Laurel, one of the panelists at the event, “Agriculture and Food as an Engine of Sustainable Growth and Jobs,” held October 23 in Washington, D.C., emphasized the crucial roles of government, the private sector, and financial institutions in boosting the farming sector.
“The World Bank and [other] financial institutions are a big part of the equation in helping transform Philippine agriculture,” Tiu Laurel said.
The WBG on Sunday announced “a strategic pivot in its approach to agribusiness with a goal to create a comprehensive ecosystem for the industry… combine a new way of working with a new level of investment, doubling its agri-finance and agribusiness commitments to $9 billion annually by 2030.”
In the same announcement, WBG president Ajay Banga said: “We stand at a crossroads, and the path we choose today will determine the future. The World Bank’s ecosystem approach moves us beyond fragmented efforts to a constellation of solutions that includes everything from warehousing to logistics to production, but with smallholder farmers and producer organizations at the center.”
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At the event, Tiu Laurel said the Philippines suffers from a funding gap of P1.2 trillion for irrigation, with water supply needed for 1.2 million hectares of arable land.
He also discussed the importance of crafting policies that directly address the needs of farmers and fisherfolk. He acknowledged state-owned banks like the Land Bank of the Philippines and the Development Bank of the Philippines that facilitate credit and funding needs of farmers.
“The main aim is for farmers to increase yields and cropping intensity to increase income and become more bankable,” he said as he pushed for the adoption of agricultural technologies and techniques.
He added that farmers have warmed up to the Department of Agriculture’s plans, provided there is adequate government support, which includes subsidies and financing.
Tiu Laurel likewise addressed the ongoing challenges of climate change and the country’s vulnerability to extreme weather disturbances. “We have just come from El Niño and are now encountering La Niña. We need to invest heavily in the infrastructure and logistics of our food systems, such as the storage of water, grains, meat and vegetables.”
The DA chief also engaged in high-level discussions with WBG officials in the East Asia and Pacific region, seeking assistance for the country’s agricultural and human capital development, alongside efforts to draw more private investments.
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